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Context
This project started in a very personal way. After my own pregnancy and birth, I found myself in the care of a physiotherapist who was helping me rebuild my strength. She was brilliant at what she did, and during our sessions, we often talked beyond just the exercises. We shared stories, laughed, and built a kind of trust that went both ways.
One day, she opened up about her own struggles. Her practice was doing well, but she felt stuck. She wanted to expand, maybe bring in new specialists, maybe reshape her services — but she wasn’t sure how. “I don’t want to just guess what my patients need,” she told me. “I want to know for sure. And I want this place to feel fresh, alive, like it’s really meeting them where they are.”
Challenge
Her challenge wasn’t a lack of ambition. If anything, she had too many ideas. The problem was direction. She wanted her next steps to be grounded in real patient needs, not just assumptions. But how do you ask people about something as sensitive as postpartum recovery or physical challenges, and get honest, useful answers?
Approach
I suggested we start with in-depth interviews (IDIs). The key here was trust. Since her patients already trusted her, we decided she would conduct the interviews herself. My role was to prepare her — I designed the interview guide and coached her on how to ask open-ended questions, how to hold space without suggesting answers, and how to really listen.
She carried out the interviews, recorded them, and later took detailed notes. Then it was my turn: I analyzed everything and began to see patterns emerge. From these insights, I created three distinct personas — vivid portraits of different types of patients, each with their own needs, motivations, and challenges.
But insights on their own aren’t enough. So the next step was a co-creation workshop. She invited people she trusted, colleagues who played an important role in her practice. Together, we used the personas as our anchor. We asked: “What would make this person feel truly supported? What services or experiences would help her most?” The energy in the room was amazing — it wasn’t just her vision anymore; it was a shared process.
Finally, we prioritized the ideas. Some were “quick wins” that could be implemented right away, others were longer-term projects. By the end, we had a concrete action plan: clear steps, deadlines, and responsibilities for the next few quarters.
Outcome & Impact
The process gave her a sense of clarity she hadn’t had before. She could now see her patients not as a vague group, but as real people with specific, relatable needs. She had a set of ideas designed directly around those needs, and — most importantly — a roadmap to make them real.
For me, the most rewarding part was seeing her transformation. She wasn’t just more confident about her business direction; she had also learned new skills. She had conducted those sensitive interviews herself and now felt equipped to use this tool again in the future. And by involving her team in the workshop, she created a sense of excitement and shared ownership that will carry her practice forward.
In short:
Problem: She felt unsure about the direction of her growing practice and wanted to better understand her patients.
Solution: We used patient interviews, personas, and a co-creation workshop to uncover needs and design solutions.
Result: She left with clarity, a patient-centered action plan, and a team motivated to bring it to life.
